1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to methods of communicating, and more particularly to methods of communicating that can be shown with reliability to have occurred on a particular date.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is common for the sender of a communication to request that its recipient confirm receipt of the communication. In a common conventional situation, a sender mails a certified letter in an envelope, to which a postcard is attached. Before the letter carrier gives the recipient possession of the letter, the recipient must sign the postcard, which is then sent back to the sender to serve as evidence that the letter was received by the recipient. Unfortunately, those who do not wish to receive such communications can refuse to sign the postcard, thereby leaving the sender with less than strong evidence that the communication was received by the recipient. Even if the recipient signs the postcard, there is no way to prove definitively what the envelope, to which the postcard was attached, contained. Therefore, there is no reliable way to prove that the recipient actually viewed the communication.
It is similarly common for a person to create a record of an occurrence verifiably taking place at a particular date and time. For example, if an inventor wishes to record a date of invention, thereby creating evidence that he or she invented no later than a particular date, he or she will typically file formal documents in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that are date-stamped and given a unique identification by a clerk employed by the government entity. However, this process is expensive and time-consuming, and one must wait to find out whether there was receipt by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. In the meantime, precious time can be lost.
Therefore, there is a need for a method and/or apparatus that permits users to form reliable evidence that a particular communication was created by a sender as of a particular date. It is also desirable, if the communication is sent to a sender, to form reliable evidence that a recipient received the communication at a particular date.